recipes for taste-full people

Arroz con Salchichas

My grandmother Ita always says an “arroz guisado” (stewed rice) is as good as the “sofrito” you make. In Puerto Rico, sofrito refers to a blend of oil, onions, garlic, aji dulce (sweet peppers), bay leaf, tomato sauce, “alcaparrado” (a blend of manzanilla olives and capers), cubanel and bell peppers, culantro (recao) and sometimes, ham, cilantro, oregano, annatto oil and cumin that is sauteed for a prolonged time to create a base for rice, legumes, soup or stews. Sofrito has its origins in Mediterranean cuisine and is also popular in Greece, Portugal and Spain. As a result of colonization and the discovery of the new world, many latin american countries have their own variation of sofrito for each specific region.

Arroz con Salchichas is a popular Puertorrican one pot meal that is inexpensive, simple and savory. It is sometimes called “the hurricane season diet” because it is easy to prepare over a gas stove, feeds a crowd and its ingredients don’t need refrigeration. It is loved by young and old and is a staple dish in traditional Puertorrican families, comfort food for many and an “antojito” (craving) for expatriates.

Enjoy!

Arroz con Salchichas

Ingredients

2 tbsp canola oil (annatto oil can also be used for a deeper red color)

2. Add rest of ingredients, except chicken broth and rice, and saute in med low for about 7-8 minutes.

3. Add rice to sofrito and quickly saute to cover all rice with color. Then add chicken stock and sausage brine and bring heat to medium. Let cook uncovered until almost all liquid has evaporated and you see bubbles on top of rice.

4. Bring heat to low. Stir with a slotted spoon and continue to cook covered, until rice is done (about 10-12 more minutes).

5 Responses

Hey!! I love arroz con salchichas and I make it 3 o 4 times a month for my family. My sofrito is a little different and I have found that the tomato sauce makes the rice harder to cook well. So I never use tomato sauce when I make any arroz guisado. I dont think you need it…

hello karina: can you share with us how you make your sofrito? if you don’t include tomato sauce, do you use annato oil or packaged sazon (coloring) to give the rice its traditional color? In my arroz con pollo recipe, I use pureed “pimientos morrones” to give the rice most of its coloring. I know some people too that don’t like to add tomato sauce to stewed rice or to stewed beans because they find the tomato sauce is too acid for their tastes. thank you so much for your comments. I love to hear the different cooking styles for the same dishes or concepts. keep your comments coming!

I start off with finely chopped Onions, pimiento verde, red bell pepper and garlic. I sautee them in Extra Virgin Olive Oil instead on just plain canola o vegetable oil. It gives it great flavor. Then I add salt, pepper, oregano, cilatrillo and packaged sazon (culantro and achiote) for color. I have a special ingredient that my mother brings me from Costa Rica 4 times a year: Salsa Lizano. It is a concentrated blend of vegetables and spices. A little bit goes a really long way. I call my secret ingredient😉 And no tomato sauce..

This is the first time I write it down, so I don’t have exact measurements for the ingredients. The truth is that my cooking style is “a ojo” style. I don’t really measure my ingredients unless I’m baking…

i have tried lizano sauce, which “ticos” include in many dishes, and it is very good. my husband loves it. the last time he went fishing to costa rica, he brought a bottle with him but it broke in his bag!! imagine the smell and mess! ja! thank you for sharing your cooking tips for arroz con salchichas. cooking “a ojo porciento” is wonderful because it denotes you have experience and confidence preparing that dish. congratulations. my grandmother will never give me exact measurements for her recipes she would say “add a little of this and a pinch of that”. for many years it was my style too, but i started to write down my recipes a while ago in order to be able to share them with others. as you mention, baking is another story… send my regards to your parents and hope you are doing well.